


To sleep, perchance to dream

by Nimbus_Cloud



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Adopted Children, Mother-Daughter Relationship, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-26
Updated: 2014-12-26
Packaged: 2018-03-03 15:35:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,276
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2856077
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nimbus_Cloud/pseuds/Nimbus_Cloud
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Weeks following her arrest and confinement, Suyin and Kuvira have a long-overdue chat.</p>
            </blockquote>





	To sleep, perchance to dream

Loneliness was a feeling she knew well, and the silence of isolation was not unfamiliar to the woman once dubbed ‘the Great Uniter.’  Yet even so, the solitude of her prison cell seemed to overwhelm her more often than not. By fate or by ludicrous coincidence, there was a perfect cell available for a bender of her abilities, and in the weeks before her official trial, she was confined in the wooden prison formerly belonging to Ghazan of the Red Lotus.  If memory served, Ghazan had served a sentence of thirteen years before his assisted escape.  Kuvira was about to go mad after thirteen days.  She wondered if her inner megalomaniac missed her adoring fans or the feeling of being in charge of the world around her.  Perhaps she missed Bataar more than she cared to admit.  Or perhaps she simply hated being left alone to deal with her own ugliness.

The nightmares were frequent. Most nights, she dreamt that some horrible specter would bring her the dark news of Bataar’s death, at her command. Some days she felt she might suffocate as she remembered the names and faces of those who had fallen in the line of duty, swearing loyalty to her name.  Many times more she remembered those who had incited her fury, the ones who died cursing her name with their dying breaths.  When the demons were at a lull, she remembered Korra.

_I guess I see a lot of myself in you._

Between their first battle and their last, the Avatar seemed to her to have exponentially grown in strength and mental fortitude. 

_I would’ve done anything to feel in control._

Kuvira sometimes wanted to ask her what she had done to get that back.  If for no other reason than to be able to get some sleep at night.

“You have a visitor.”

“Not the Avatar, I hope,” Kuvira half-joked, rubbing a strand of her hair between two fingers. “I’m afraid I’m not looking my best.” The first few days she had tried to at least keep her hair braided, but soon gave up her attempts when she was informed of how often she would be allowed to bathe. 

“Even better,” sneered the ugly man before he switched stations with another officer, who brought with him Suyin Beifong. 

_No._

“Thank you.”

_Anyone but her._

“I’ll be just outside if you need me,” the young man reassured her before he bowed and took his leave.

“That won’t be necessary,” Suyin assured him as she sat down in the chair beside the cell. “I’m sure she won’t do anything rash.”

Kuvira frowned sullenly at the floor.  She had, of course, been joking a moment ago.  But if her visitor had been the Avatar, her disheveled appearance and her oversized prison rags would have been considerably less of a personal insult.  Korra had shown her a compassion Su had not… nor was she showing it now.

“Bataar wanted to come see you, but I thought it was important that I come see you first.”

“A nicer way of saying that you forbade him from coming and are intent on never letting him see me again,” Kuvira scoffed.  “I may not be Aiwei, but you should know better than to lie to me, Su.” 

“Even if I could stop _my son_ from wanting to be here, he’s under strict orders from the doctors to remain in bed-rest until his injuries are fully healed.”  Su snapped, her eyes immediately losing any feigned warmth. 

The prisoner fell silent and turned her face away in shame, her fists clenched tight.

_I love you, Bataar._

She had meant what she said, no matter what any of them might believe now.  The truth was that she wanted to see Bataar even less than Su wanted her to see him.  As if a mother’s scorn could compare to a lover’s shame and agony. 

“I told you that you were going to pay for everything you’ve done,” Su broke the silence. “The leaders of the world are making you pay for your transgressions against the United Republic. Even without my testimony, you’ll most likely be left to rot in this wooden cell for the rest of your days. But there’s nothing I can do to undo what you’ve done to Bataar, what you’ve done to _my_ son, _my_ family.” She hissed. 

_I was never truly a part of that family._

“What I did was unforgivable,” Kuvira whispered.  “I am sorry for the rift I caused between Bataar and his family, but I’m only what you made of me, Su.”

“What are you talking about?”

“You raised me, Su. You taught me, you trained me.” _But you never loved me._

“And _you_ betrayed me!” The color was rising in Su’s face. “After everything I had done for you, you went against everything I stood for—“

“What _you_ stand for?”  Kuvira spat.  “What is it you stand for, Su?  In your isolated paradise, with not a care for the outside world, ignoring the struggles of your people and your countrymen, you stood for exclusion!  Hogging the technological advances of your husband and son and hoarding the wealth of your city while states in the Earth Kingdom starved, you stood for greed!” 

“I knew you couldn’t be reasoned with—“ Su huffed as she began to rise from her seat.

“That’s right, run away! Just like you ran away from your duty to your nation; throw me aside like you’ve always done!”

“I took you in as one of my own children—“

“But I was never really one of them, was I!”  The tears came unbidden, stinging Kuvira’s eyes.  She blinked them away angrily before hissing out, “I wasn’t a daughter to you, I was a pet! And the moment I stopped showing unwavering loyalty to you, you cast me out as if I meant nothing to you—you, you… You were going to try and kill me in my sleep!” 

“So you took Bataar away from us in revenge?  You’re saying you did all of this to what, to teach me a lesson?” 

“Don’t be an idiot, I loved Bataar.”  Inhaling a deep breath, Kuvira sniffed and brushed her hair behind her ears. 

Suyin watched as the young woman turned away from her, caged and defeated yet still unrelenting. Her unkempt hair and wrinkled clothing did little to hide her stately posture or the convinction in her eyes. Though the honorable matriarch had never seen Kuvira so emotional in all her life, she was still keeping careful control—proud, stubborn, and willful to a fault. There was more of herself in Kuvira than she cared to admit… but Kuvira had never lied to her.

“Tell me why you fired that cannon at us.” 

“I was trying to kill the avatar.” 

“Even if it meant killing him too?” 

“In that moment, it was the most logical step in furthering my goals.  It wasn’t about what I wanted, it was for the Empire.” 

Suyin had heard enough. She stood to leave, calling the guard to resume his post. 

“Oh Kuvira, what a fool you’ve been.” 

If she closed her eyes, she could almost imagine a hint of kindness. 

“Tell Bataar I’m sorry, whatever it’s worth.”

“No,” Su nodded to the guard who would escort her off of the boat.  “You can tell him yourself when he comes to see you.”

As the guards took Suyin Beifong away, Kuvira watched silently as her boat sailed away across the vast expanse of water and smiled.  She spent the rest of the evening brushing the tangles out of her hair with her fingers, braided it, and slept well that night. 

**Author's Note:**

> Basically I just wanted more resolution for Kuvira and Su's vague mother-daughter subplot. And while this by no means gives rest to their gripes with one another (such things usually take years), it's maybe a step for both of them in the right direction. 
> 
> I actually don't like Suyin all that much for reasons I won't go into here, and I really wanted her to look at Kuvira and see a mirrored image of her own faults and flaws, and to also see the daughter she failed to raise.


End file.
